As it is known, in the event of bites or stings by insects or other creatures which transmit poisons or toxins, it is possible to carry out a local treatment in the area of the bite or sting for the purpose of degrading the poison or toxin which has been injected, by subjecting the tissue to a suitable electrical discharge.
In particular, known treatment devices exploit the piezoelectric effect to generate the electrical discharge: in these devices, the operator (who may be the same person as the victim of the bite or sting), acts on a piezoelectric crystal, usually by means of a direct mechanical control, imposing a “state of stress” on the crystal, which reacts by generating a difference in potential. By connecting the two poles of the crystal to suitable terminals, and positioning these terminals in close proximity to the area of the bite or sting on the victim, it is thus possible to discharge this difference in potential in the area, thus acting on the toxins or poisons injected.
The present applicant has designed a device of this kind, as described and claimed in patent EP0788809: this device has an upper control button, a piezoelectric crystal subject to the upper control button and a discharge area suitably positionable over the area to be treated.
All the components making up the device are contained in a shell of a material which may be electrically conductive or non-conductive, according to the embodiment, and which in the implemented solution is made up of two longitudinal half-shells and two end portions, one of which is shaped in such a way as to be able to house and guide the control button, while the other is positioned close to the discharge zone.
The device, which has been briefly explained, although it is of proven efficacy and has been on the market for some time, has a number of disadvantages in the manufacturing stage.
Indeed, the complex construction of the shell entails a considerable and prolonged working process to assemble it, which has to provide for bringing together and aligning numerous pieces as well as the problematic coupling (for example by gluing or snapping together or ultrasound welding) of the two longitudinal half-shells of the containing body.
The long and onerous assembly process, which moreover entails difficulties of automation and must provide for the insertion and alignment of the piezoelectric element, the discharge area (with the relative terminals) and the control button, increases the labor time and in the last analysis the costs of production.
Furthermore, the fact that two separate half-shells are involved entails the possibility that pieces with slightly different shades of color could be assembled together (as a result for example of different storage conditions or the two half-shells coming from different molding batches), thus resulting in a product of inferior overall quality.